Tree House Trauma
by BigBowlOfCornflakes
Summary: Fionna and Cake are moving into the tree house. The only problem is the bored vampire king who quickly develops an interest in harassing them. Will they prevail? Or will the tree house continue to smell like tomato sauce forever? FionnaxMarshall Lee
1. Chapter 1

Sarp hombres, I just vomited out this little chapter to add to the fandom that is Marshall Lee and Fionna. They can't help it that they are attractive in every possible aspect, I suppose.

Hopefully it's an easy and fun read, so enjoy and let me know if you would be interested in another chapter.

* * *

'What do you think?'

Fionna and Cake stared at the tree house in front of them. It was overgrown and dark, with branches exploding out of the trunk and roots digging greedily into the ground. The planks of wood leading up the trunk had long since rotted away, leaving the boards hanging limply from the brown trunk. A large pile of junk surrounded the base that consisted mainly of broken guitars and wheels. Fionna looked at Cake.

'This is it?'

Cake shrugged.

'Yep.'

Fionna looked at the house again.

'It's awesome.'

Cake shook herself and grabbed Fionna by the arm.

'Let's go check it out girl.'

They jumped into the air where Cake extended her feet out to the dilapidated balcony, forming a bridge for Fionna. Once they were up, the two of them walked up to the door. Cake looked at Fionna, who shrugged and looked back. The two began quietly pushing each other towards the door, when they heard a loud bang. They froze, staring as the door creaked open.

A thin set of fingers slid out from behind the dark room, and a pair of red eyes stared at the girls. Fionna felt her stomach drop, and she reached into her backpack slowly and wrapped a hand around the hilt of her sword. The eyes glared at her, and a rough male voice spoke.

'What do you want?'

Fionna took a deep breath.

'We're here to see the house.'

'It's not for sale.'

Cake made a fist motion to Fionna, who looked at the red eyes.

'We're not buying.'

There was a choking sound from behind the door, and Fionna realised he was laughing. She glared and pointed at the door.

'I'm not playing around. My buddy and I deal with dudes like you all the time,' she said, walking forwards.

'Is that so?'

Cake's tail puffed up.

'Boy, I'm gonna give you a serving.'

She leaned forward and pushed the door. It flew open and Fionna felt her mouth open as she cried out. There was a flurry of movement behind the door, but she could make out a tall figure with tattered clothes on and a mop of dark hair. Cake hissed as the figure retreated and followed him into the house.

'Wait, Cake!'

Fionna ran after Cake and stumbled into the dark room, where she could see nothing. She heard Cake and the figure fighting, with shrieks and hisses filling her ears. Fionna fell over a chair and cursed as her backpack tumbled away. The fighting sound stopped and she felt the wind move in front of her.

A thin hand wrapped around her neck and pushed her backwards. Fionna yelled out and kicked, hitting something in front of her. Whatever was holding her hissed and gripped her throat tighter. They flew across the room and hit the wall. The air was knocked out of Fionna's lungs and she clawed at the figure in front of her desperately. She felt a hot breath on her neck and recoiled, swinging her arm out to the side to grab a weapon. She felt something soft in her hand and pulled it hard.

Light flooded the room. Fionna had time to make out the grey skin, dark eyes and sharp teeth of the figure as he shrieked. He was a vampire. And a very cranky one at that.

He glared at Fionna, who stepped back into the light, holding up her arms in defence. He flew towards her and hissed, but before he could get far Cake appeared, full sized and very angry.

'Oh no you don't.'

Cake brought her fists down on top of him and slammed him into the ground. The vampire stopped moving, and Fionna stared as Cake prodded him.

'He's knocked out,' she declared, and Fionna gave her a high-five.

'Sweet work Cake,' she said. The girls looked at the vampire, who was sprawled out on the floor.

'What're we gonna do with him?' asked Cake. Fionna shrugged.

'Toss him out, I guess.'

Cake shook her head.

'Nuh-uh. Prince Gumball warned us not to let him get loose.'

Fionna sighed.

'Fine. I guess we'll just tie him up.'

They found a chair in the kitchen which Fionna sat on.

'It's so uncomfortable,' she said as she dragged it out. Cake sat on it and made a face.

'It looks old as. I found some chains in the bedroom.

'Ew. Gross.'

They dragged the vampire off the ground and into the chair. As they sat him in it he began to stir, his eyebrows drawing together in a frown.

'Hurry, he's waking up!'

Fionna and Cake wrapped the chain around his arms and legs and finally attached it to the lamp on the ceiling. Fionna smiled smugly.

'Legit.'

The red eyes opened, and Fionna felt her throat itch as they looked at her. Cake walked up and slapped the vampire across the face.

'Ouch. What the heck was that for?' he said, moving his chest. 'And why am I tied up?'

'Royal orders, sweetie,' said Cake, and slapped him again. Fionna picked up her backpack and pulled out her sword. The vampire watched her, making her feel uncomfortable.

'We have been given a Royal Pardon by Prince Gumball to relocate to this tree house,' she said. 'We were told that any inhabitants were to be removed.'

The vampire bared his teeth and hissed.

'What a brave Prince. He sent some girl and a cat to take care of me?'

Fionna felt her cheeks flush.

'I'm not just some girl,' she said, and Cake slapped the vampire. He grunted.

'Whatever. He mustn't care about your lives very much.'

'We can handle ourselves fine,' said Cake.

'You got lucky.'

'Cake, let's just toss him out. The house is ours now.'

'No!'

She stopped and stared at the vampire, who struggled in his seat.

'Don't, don't, throw me outside. Not in the sun. Why is this chair so uncomfortable?'

Fionna glared at him.

'Why shouldn't we? You're rude and totally not cool.'

The vampire glared at them.

'I am too cool. Way cooler than you'll ever be.'

'No way.'

They stared at each other in silence. The vampire sighed and leaned back in the chair. It squeaked.

'Listen, just let me go and you can have the house. Forever.'

Cake scratched her chin and Fionna narrowed her eyes.

'Two conditions.'

The vampire hissed.

'One. You must never attack us here again.'

The vampire rolled his eyes.

'Done.'

'And two,' she said, looking at the vampire. He looked a bit older than her, and completely disgruntled. Apart from the grey skin and sharp teeth, he would have looked like a punk with his dark hair and flannelette shirt. The bracelets on his arms shone dully in the room.

'Tell me your name.'

The vampire groaned.

'No way.'

Fionna shrugged.

'Fine.'

She grabbed the back of the chair and started to drag it. The vampire struggled and yelled out.

'Okay, okay! Stop moving me already.'

Fionna turned the chair around and scrutinised the vampires face. He sighed.

'It's Marshall Lee. The Vampire King.'

Fionna smiled.

'I'm Fionna. This is Cake.'

'Don't care.'

Cake reached out and slapped Marshal Lee across the face. Fionna began to undo the chains.

'You can start by moving your crap out of the tree house.'

Marshal Lee groaned.

'I didn't agree to that.'

Fionna stopped untying and looked sternly at him, and Cake pointed at the door. He swallowed.

'Fine.'

* * *

Fionna and Cake sat on the floor of the tree house and smiled. The smell of death and tomato sauce had been exterminated, and Marshal Lee had left after wishing them both a painful death.

'What a lame dude,' said Fiona, and Cake stood up and stretched.

'You said it. I'm gonna go get some food. You wanna come?'

'Nah, I'm beat.'

Cake stretched across the floor and out the door.

'Kay girl, see you later.'

Fionna waved and stretched out on the floor, yawning. She dozed off and dreamt of a dark room full of dogs and cheeseburgers, and kept getting upset when she couldn't pick either one up. When she woke up, it was dark. Fionna sat up and looked around. There was a noise in the kitchen.

'Cake? You home?'

There was no answer. Fionna felt her skin crawl, and reached for her backpack. It was gone. There was another noise in the kitchen, and this time it was louder.

'Okay. Whoever you are, I'm totally going to kick your butt if you don't leave by the time I count to three.'

There was no reply. Fionna walked through the kitchen walkway.

'One.'

She felt for the light switch.

'Two.'

She flicked it on, and nothing happened. A pair of arms grabbed her from behind.

'Three,' a voice whispered in her ear. It smelt suspiciously of tomato sauce.

Fionna yelled out as she felt herself rising off the ground. She kicked out with her legs but felt nothing but air. The room whirled past her as she flew out the door. The arms held her own in a tight vice, and Fionna felt her stomach drop as she saw how high up she was flying. Marshal Lee's laugh cut through the air and Fionna yelled at him.

'You said you wouldn't attack us in our house!'

'I didn't,' he replied. 'I kidnapped you.'

'That's basically the same thing!'

'Well, maybe you should be more specific about your rules.'

'Ugh, you are so lame.'

Marshall Lee stopped flying.

'Here looks good.'

'Looks good for what?'

'To drop you.'

Fionna felt her arms slipping from his.

'Wait-wait-wait! You said this was a kidnapping, right?'

Marshall Lee frowned at her.

'Right.'

Fionna swallowed.

'So, then, if you drop me here now, that doesn't classify as kidnapping.'

He shrugged.

'So?'

'So,' she continued, 'it would be murder, which is a form of attack. Which you promised not to do.'

'Yeah, I promised not to attack you in your house.'

'But it started in my house. You can't just start something and change it to suit your will.'

Marshall looked at her and Fionna realised how close together they were. Her chest and legs were touching his own, with their arms entwined. She began to struggle.

'On second thought, drop me.'

He raised an eyebrow and held her tighter.

'Why?'

'Drop me. Drop me!'

'Why? What's wrong?' Marshal Lee began to smile as he watched Fiona pull away. He leaned in closer, breathing tomato sauce all over her face.

'Scared to be too close to the Vampire King?'

Fionna reached out and slapped him.

'You're such a creep!'

The blow shocked Marshal Lee and Fionna slipped out of his arms, falling into the open space. Her eyes widened as she began to plummet towards the ground, flipping backwards and twisting. The ground grew larger by the second, and when Fionna tried to scream the air was sucked out her lungs by the force of the fall. She closed her eyes and went still, waiting for the painful impact.

She hit something hard, but she didn't feel her bones break. When she realised she wasn't dead, Fionna opened her eyes. A familiar face greeted her.

'That was a bit stupid, don't you think?'

Marshal Lee had caught her. They were back on the ground and he was staring at her with a bemused expression. Fionna stared back blankly before pushing herself out of his grasp.

'Why did you do that?'

He shrugged.

'Because it would break the agreement.'

He brushed the hair out of his eyes.

'Normally, I'd suck the red out of your face. But you look as white as a sheet,' he said, turning away from Fionna.

'Wait! Where are you going?'

He waved a hand at her.

'Home. I've done enough for one day.'

Fionna stood there, feeling confused and very angry.

'I don't owe you anything!'

'Sure you don't.'

'I mean it!'

'Yeah.'

'I most definitely am not going to thank you!'

'Whatever you say. Night.'

Fionna stomped the ground with her foot.

'You smell like tomato sauce!'

Marshal Lee turned around and smiled at her, baring all his teeth.

'And you're cute when you're angry.'

He rose up off the ground, making a rock sign at her.

'Peace out until next time, when I decide to kill you.

As he flew away, Fionna felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment.

'What a jerk.'

* * *

When Fionna got home, Cake was eating a cheeseburger on the floor.

'Hey you. Where were you at?'

Fionna told her what happened. Cake puffed up and hissed.

'That is so not cool. Do you wanna go beat him up?'

Fionna shook her head and bit into her cheeseburger.

'Not right now. Maybe tomorrow?'

'Word.'

Fionna swallowed.

'This is good. Where'd you get these?'

'Eh, found them in a field with a few others.'

Fionna grinned and bit into it again.

'Mmm. Crunchy.'

* * *

JUST DO IT LIVE


	2. Chapter 2

**A couple of you liked the story so I decided I would add some more adventures. Thank you for your feedback and support, it was lovely! Enjoy.**

* * *

'Mornin' Cake.'

'Hey hun. Want some pancakes?'

'You bet your butt I do.'

Fionna sat down at wooden table they had salvaged from the wreckage beneath the tree house. Most of their furniture was beat up or engraved with the letters, 'M.L', which had irritated Cake hugely.

'Who the heck does he think he is, going around and scratching all the good furniture?' she said as she picked over what was left.

'He's just full of himself,' Fionna replied.

Ever since the kidnapping incident, Fionna had been on edge. At night she would hear things scraping on the roof and tapping on the glass, but no matter how she looked she only saw tree branches and birds. One night she swore she saw a silhouette outside her window, but when she told Cake the cat just shrugged it off.

'Don't let it get to you girl, there's plenty of things here that go bump in the night.'

'I know, but—'

'Are you scared?'

'No way!'

As they ate their pancakes, Fionna looked outside the window. In the distance she saw a dark cave drilled into the side of the grey mountainside.

'Hey Cake, we never looked over there, did we?' she said. Cake looked at her from over her bowl.

'Looked where?'

'The mountains.'

Cake hissed suddenly and shook her head.

'You don't wanna go there. It's full of monsters and other dangerous things.'

Fionna sat up in her chair.

'But Cake, that's what we do. We fight monsters.'

Cake looked stumped.

'Oh yeah. We do.'

'In fact, you could say that the forbidden mountain range is exactly where we should be going.'

They looked at each other.

'You know what time it is?'

'Hah hah. Hah.'

* * *

They stood at the base of the mountain. Fionna rubbed her arms from the chilly air.

'It feels spooky,' she said.

Cake looked at the mountain and frowned.

'That's strange. I don't see anyone.'

'Maybe they all live inside?'

'Let's check it out.'

They stood still and waited.

'You first,' said Fionna.

'No way. After you.'

After a small tussle they both agreed to go in together. They walked down the small path leading into the cave and rounded a corner, leaving the sunlight behind.

'Hold on,' said Fionna, pulling her backpack off her shoulders and opening it. 'Here we go.'

She turned on the flashlight and shone it at Cake, who squinted back.

'Don't shine it in my eyes, point it that way,' she whispered, gesturing into the cave with her paw.

As they walked, Fionna felt her skin crawl. The further they walked into the mountain, the more unsettled she became. A cold wind began to blow, and the sound of water echoed around the tunnel.

'I don't like this,' said Fionna after hearing a noise in the distance.

'Yeah, I kinda get the feeling that we're being watched.'

Just as Cake finished her sentence, Fionna's flashlight turned off.

'Uh-oh.'

'Quick, turn it back on.'

'It ran out of batteries.'

The sound of deep laughter interrupted their conversation. The two of them stared into a large opening where it had come from.

'Let's take a look.'

They ran over to the edge of the opening where an orange glow shone. Cake stretched around the corner to get a better look.

'What is it?' asked Fionna. Cake made a sign to be quiet as she stretched back.

'It's a group of trolls sitting around a fire,' she said. Fionna gulped.

'How many?'

'I counted four. Listen, maybe we should get back to the tree house. We might be able to take out one or two, but four is way too many for us,' said Cake. Fionna shook her head.

'No, we can't leave. What if they come out at night and hurt someone?'

Cake shrugged and Fionna sighed at her.

'Plus, we can take them by surprise. They're kinda stupid anyway, right?'

'I guess so.'

'And you can just grow and squash them if worse comes to worse.'

Cake smiled and nodded.

'Yeah! Well, if you're up for it, so am I.'

'Let's do this.'

They crept into the cave and behind the four trolls, who were talking about hair brushes.

'I found that the less bristles it has, the easier it is to do my hair with,' said one patting the stringy hair on its head. Its bald friend snorted and shook its head.

'Who needs hair brushes when you have wax? I use it every day—look how strong my hair is!'

The other three muttered and looked away as the bald troll posed. One of the trolls saw Fionna and Cake, and they froze on the spot. It squinted and looked closer.

'Hey, look at this. They look so real,' it said, poking Cake's furry stomach with its long finger. Another troll scratched its head.

'I've never seen these before.'

'Neither,' said the third troll. 'When did they get here?'

'I saw them yesterday,' boasted the fourth troll, and the others began to argue among themselves. Fionna glanced at Cake, who nodded.

'Now!' she cried, and Cake swelled up to an enormous size, pushing the trolls out of the cave. Fionna chased them with her sword and began hitting them. The trolls yelled out and ran away into the depths of the cave.

'Don't let them get away!'

'I'll get these ones over here!' replied Cake.

Fionna ran after the trolls, following the sounds of their wailing. She turned a corner and saw two of them bent at the waist and panting.

'Gotcha!' she yelled, charging forward. The trolls looked up in horror, and just as she was about to swing her sword down on them she felt something strike the back of her head hard. Fionna stared blankly ahead for a moment, watching the trolls as they stared at something behind her with terrified expressions. Then the sword fell out of her hand and she fell forward into darkness.

* * *

When Fionna woke up, she felt the back of her head throbbing slightly. Groaning she sat up and looked around. She was still in the cave, but there were thick iron bars surrounding her in a rectangular cage. As she stood up she heard metal dragging on the floor, and saw that her feet were shackled to the floor.

The sound of laughter interrupted her thoughts, and she recognised it from earlier.

'Show yourself!' she called out, staring ahead with her back to the bars. She felt a cold wind on her cheek and a familiar smell filled her nose.

'Hello again. I see you've been busy stirring up my prisoners,' a voice said in her ear. Fionna jerked away from the bars and fell forward, rolling on the ground and turning to face the voice.

'Marshall,' she said with disgust. The Vampire King materialised in front of her, walking through the iron bars and tugging on the metal chain that shackled her feet. Fionna yelled out as she was dragged towards him, clawing at the ground.

He was dressed in tattered jeans and a hideously coloured green sweater which made his skin look more pale than usual. His red eyes shone in the darkness and he grinned at Fionna, baring his fangs.

'What's wrong?' he asked sarcastically as he pulled Fionna off the ground by her throat. She punched him in the face, making him laugh loudly.

'Put me down,' gasped Fionna, punching him again and again. She could barely breathe and felt his fingers closing around her throat in a cruel vice. Just when she thought she would pass out Marshal dropped her on the ground, staring at her with a calculated expression.

'You kick me out of my home, and now you're causing chaos in my prison. What's the matter with you?' he asked, dusting his hands. Fionna glared at him.

'I was told this was a mountain full of monsters.'

Marshall looked at her with his eyebrow raised.

'Correct.'

They stared at each other.

'I saw the trolls here.'

'Mmhmm.'

'So what were they doing running around?'

Marshall sighed at her.

'They're what you call 'prison guards'. You know, the ones who make sure nobody escapes and goes into the land of 'Ooh' and hurts anybody. You know those guys?'

Fionna looked away and felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment.

'I wasn't told this was a prison.'

Marshall clicked his tongue and shook his head.

'Well that's landed you in a bit of a mess, hasn't it?'

Fionna tugged at the chains on her feet.

'Let me go.'

Marshall laughed again, and Fionna felt goose bumps on her arms.

'Not a chance. You broke the law by attacking prison guards. You'll be staying here until I say otherwise.'

Fionna stood up and walked over to Marshall.

'That's not fair! I didn't know who they were. You can't keep me here.'

He grinned at her and grabbed her chin with his cold fingers.

'Careful little girl. I didn't have any breakfast this morning and that anger is making you look very red in the face.'

Fionna slapped his hand and backed away, rubbing her chin.

'I'm not a 'little girl'. I'm a hero, and you're gonna pay for this.'

Marshall laughed and began to disappear in a cloud of smoke.

'I'll be back later for my dinner. I'll be seeing you then.'

* * *

Fionna spent hours bashing the chains with a sharp rock she had found on the floor. Her hands were scratched and oozing blood, and she was worried that the smell would attract Marshall. But most of all she was worried about what had happened to Cake. Silently she hoped that her friend had gotten out of the cave and far away from the prison.

She felt embarrassed when she said the word. How was she supposed to know that the Vampire King was in charge of keeping all the prisoners of 'Ooh' in line? Of course it made sense, but she still felt foolish for attacking innocent civilians. One of the trolls had come up to her cell and she had apologised for attacking them.

'It's okay,' it said to her, 'it happens more often than we'd like it to.'

Which made Fionna feel even worse about it all. It was hours later when she heard a noise coming towards her cell. Fionna stood in the centre of the cell, glaring all around her.

'Well, you've finally come to eat me, huh? Don't be a chicken about it and stop hiding!' she yelled out.

'Calm down honey, it's only me.' Fionna whirled around and saw Cake reshaping to her normal size in front of the cell door.

'Cake! I was worried about you.'

'Save it for later—we gotta get you out of here.'

Cake made her paw into a key and pushed it into the lock. The door creaked open and she ran in, unlocking the shackles on Fionna's feet.

'Let's go,' she said, and they ran out of the cell and into the tunnel. Fionna jumped on Cake's back and they flew along the path until they saw the light outside.

'It's still light outside!' cried Fionna, and Cake ran even faster. Before they could run outside, a dark shape blocked their path.

'Leaving so soon?' asked Marshall Lee as he appeared before them. Fionna jumped off and pulled her sword from the backpack Cake had retrieved.

'Move out of the way, vampire scum,' she said coldly. Marshall looked at her and burst into laughter.

'It's so hard to take you seriously when you speak like that,' he said, creating a dark portal with his right hand. He pulled out a bass guitar shaped like an axe and twirled it in his hand. 'No prisoners have ever escaped from me yet.'

Fionna yelled and charged forward, her sword crashing down on Marshall's axe. Cake bounded forward and kicked Marshall, who staggered back towards the sun. They fought, driving Marshall further towards the cave's opening. He hissed at them and grew to an enormous size in the form of a bat. Cake grew larger and began wrestling him to the ground, hissing and scratching at him as he swung at her with the axe. Finally he hit her and sent Cake flying across the cave, where she hit the side and slumped down to her normal size.

'Cake!' Fionna screamed, turning to face Marshall as he shrieked at her.

'Do you actually think you can defeat me? You're just a little girl,' he said condescendingly. Fionna stood her ground and threw down her sword.

'I'm not a 'little girl'!'

She ran forward and jumped, punching Marshall in the stomach. He fell back and grunted as Fionna kicked him in the face. She landed on his arm and attacked again and again, causing Marshall to go back to his human form as he struggled to block her attacks.

Fionna ran and kicked him in the face one last time, and Marshall fell down to his knees, coughing. Fionna drew her sword and pointed it at him. He looked up and smiled at her.

'Not bad,' he said finally, 'Not bad at all.'

He stood up and dusted himself off, picking up his bass axe. Fionna stood ready for another attack but Marshall summoned the portal once more and threw the axe inside. Then he began walking into the tunnel and picked up Cake.

'Sorry about that,' he said, handing her to Fionna. She could only stand and watch as he stumbled into the cave.

'Where are you going?' she asked. Marshall turned to her and shrugged.

'I got my butt kicked. I'll probably go eat some red stuff. Adios.'

'And why are you so confident that I'll just let you go?'

Marshall shrugged.

'Because you're the hero. You only punish the bad guys.'

Fionna felt her cheeks burn and looked away.

'Whatever.'

She turned away and walked outside into the setting sun. Cake stirred in her arms.

'What happened?' she asked. Fionna shook her head.

'I'll tell you later. In short, I defeated the Vampire King.'

'Rad.'

Fionna didn't say it, but inside she felt different about Marshall.

'Maybe he isn't as bad as we first thought.'

'Pfft, that guy? He's bad news Fionna. We need to stay away from him.'

But of course, their adventures together had only really just begun.

* * *

**ADIOS**


	3. Chapter 3

Hey guys. So I hear a lot of you are enjoying the story thus far so here is yet another instalment It is actually part one of two I guess you could say- the next part will be along soon. I hope you enjoy reading it!

* * *

It was early in the morning when the invitation arrived at the tree house. Cake grabbed it before Fionna could, laughing and pushing her into the wall.

'What's it say?' said Fionna as Cake read it.

'It's a letter from Prince Gumball,' she replied, waving it in front of Fionna who snatched it.

'What? What for?'

Fionna ran to the table and slammed the letter down, reading the contents frantically.

_Dearest Fionna,_ it began.

_As you know, tonight is the Candy Solstice of the Cold Snap. Although it is more of a formal occasion, there are some citizens of Ooh who seek to cause a ruckus and ruin the night's festivities for all. I am hoping that you will join me tonight at the festival, along with Cake, to ensure that the peace is kept and that no harm befalls this most joyous occasion?_

_Faithfully,_

_Prince Gumball._

The signature was flourished and each stroke of writing was more perfect than the last. Fionna sighed and clutched the letter to her chest.

'He's asked us to come to the Candy Winter Solstice,' she said, flapping the letter in the air. 'He asked me to come.'

Cake took the letter from her hand and stared hard at Fionna.

'Now hold on just a minute. The letter asked if we could help out with security, not—'

'I have to choose something to wear!' cried Fionna, pushing Cake out of the way and running up the steps of the tree house.

When Fionna got to her room she flung open her wardrobe doors. Her look of anticipation quickly diminished into disappointment as she examined the contents. The rack consisted mainly of blue shirts and skirts, and the shelves were stacked with pairs of long white socks. A dusty suit of armour rattled in the corner, and a frayed clown suit hung limply over the rack. Fionna frowned and turned to Cake, who sat on the bed sharpening her claws.

'This isn't good at all,' Fionna said, moaning as she grabbed her hair. 'What am I gonna do?'

'Well,' said Cake,' you don't have to dress up fancy. We're only going as security, right?'

'Right,' said Fionna with a sniff.

'Then all we need are some simple black clothes.'

Fionna's jaw dropped as she looked at Cake.

'Then we'll look like...'

Cake smiled knowingly. 'Ninjas.'

Fionna jumped in the air and high-fived Cake.

'Best idea ever! Let's go rustle up some black cloth off those bandits that live in the field next door.'

* * *

When they returned, Fionna had a black eye and Cake was covered in scratches.

'I hope we don't look too weird tonight,' said Fionna as they unravelled the cloth.

Cake shrugged.

'We're security. We're supposed to look like we've been in a fight.'

Fionna scratched her chin.

'Oh yeah. Good thinking, Cake.'

Fionna made lunch as Cake signed the security costumes. By the time it was dusk, they had arrived at the castle dressed in their black attire. Fionna made some hand gestures at Cake, who shrugged and knocked on the door. As they heard the footsteps approaching, Fionna pulled her fringe over her bruised eye to cover the swelling. Moments later, Prince Gumball opened the door.

'Fionna! I'm so glad you could make it. And it's good to see you, Cake.'

'Hey there. Where's Monochrome?'

A deep neigh could be heard in the distance, and Cake's fur puffed up.

'I'm gonna go scout the other side of the palace. Catch up with you later,' said Cake with a wave, leaving Fionna and the prince alone. Fionna felt her cheeks go red and she scratched the back of her neck with a laugh.

'It's okay, you know I'd always help you out, no matter what.'

Gumball smiled and touched Fionna's shoulder.

'I'm glad to hear that. You see, there is another reason I asked you hear tonight.'

Fionna felt her heart beat faster as she stared at the Prince.

'What do you mean?'

The Prince leaned in closer and Fionna felt her eyes widen with surprise, a bead of sweat running down her neck.

'I needed extra security tonight because there are rumours that a certain vampire has returned,' said Gumball quietly. Fionna felt her eyebrows fall back into place and she stepped backwards.

'What? You mean Marshal Lee, the Vampire Jerk?'

Prince Gumball looked surprised.

'You know him?'

Fionna folded her arms and looked away.

'Yeah. I met him on the day that Cake and I went to look at the tree house, which you—by the way—recommended.'

'I had no idea he was around, let alone that he had ever lived there.'

'Huh.'

There was a silence and Fionna felt her cheeks go red.

'Sorry. I just don't like him, that's all. I haven't had the nicest experience with him.'

Gumball laughed.

'Me either. Trust me.'

They looked at each other and Fionna smiled.

'Don't worry. I'll make sure that jerk doesn't come anywhere near this awesome party.'

Gumball took her hand in both of his.

'Thanks for doing this Fionna. I knew I could count on you.'

Fionna laughed and shrugged.

'You know me. Always saving people.'

They waved goodbye, and Fionna sighed as she saw the Prince walking away and back into the castle. Then she turned and looked at the outer walls of the castle. It looked like a good place to hide and watch everyone down below from both inside and outside the castle. Fionna climbed the ladder up the wall and perched there, pulling her binoculars from her backpack.

For hours Fionna saw nothing suspicious, and turned her attention instead to the inside of the party. She could see Lumpy Space Prince having a drama with one of his friends about a girl called Bree, and a lot of other princes were there mingling with everyone else. She felt a pang of longing, wishing she was down in the court having fun. Cake was nowhere to be seen, and neither was Lord Monochrome, but Fionna just shrugged it off. Then she saw Prince Gumball talking to another princes from one of the faraway lands. Instantly Fionna felt her jealousy flare, and she used the binoculars to get a better look. The girl was pretty enough, with green skin and white hair with pointed ears, but together they seemed to be laughing and having a great time.

Fionna sat back and pouted, throwing the binoculars on the ground.

'What's wrong? Some guy got you down?'

Fionna squeaked as the voice sounded behind her, turning around and falling backwards. Marshal Lee sat perched on the wall of the castle, laughing as he watched Fionna. He was dressed in a red button-up shirt with ripped black pants, his barefeet making no noise as he touched the ground.

'Marshal Lee, what are you doing here?' Fionna said in a quiet voice, walking up to the vampire and grabbing his sleeve. Marshal put his hands up in surrender.

'Don't worry- I'm not here to cause trouble.'

'Good, cause if you do I won't hesitate to kick your butt.'

Marshal laughed and Fionna felt annoyed.

'Well that doesn't answer my question.'

He shrugged and looked down at the party.

'I'm here to do much like what you were doing just now—to stalk.'

Fionna blushed.

'I—I was NOT stalking anyone!'

Marshal walked past her and sat on the ground, picking up the binoculars.

'Suuuure you weren't. Hey, who's the hottie that Gumball's chattin' to?'

'Give me those,' said Fionna with a snarl as she snatched the binoculars away.

'My vision is better than your puny magnifiers, anyway.'

'Good for you.'

They sat together in silence, and Fionna felt obliged to speak.

'You know, last time I saw you, you were trying to lock me in a prison.'

Marshal scratched his head.

'Oh yeah. Well, you shouldn't have been snooping around my stuff. Or kicked me out of my own house.'

'I also kicked your butt.'

'I don't remember that.'

Fionna fumed and continued to watch the party. The green skin girl and Prince Gumball were now dancing together, and by the looks of it, it was more than just an acquaintance.

'Ugh,' she said, putting the binoculars down and straightening up. Marshal Lee looked at her with an eyebrow raised.

'Are you upset?'

'No,' replied Fionna bitterly.

'Come on now. I'm a thousand years old. I was only guessing to be polite.'

'Go guess somewhere else you big jerk. I don't really wanna talk to you anyway. Infact, I should be taking you far away from this party.'

Marshal grinned at her.

'Is that a date?'

Fionna said nothing, feeling embarrassed.

'Why are you acting so normal? It's totally weird.'

He shrugged.

'I've never met another person who could beat me in a fight. And the fact that you're a girl makes it about four point six five times more awesome.'

'Aha! So you admit it!'

'Admit what?'

'Oh, don't even worry about it.'

Fionna tucked her hair behind her ear and sighed, looking at the sky.

'What happened to your eye?'

Fionna stiffened as she felt a cold finger brush against the swelling. She turned and looked at Marshal, who had an odd expression on his face.

'What? It's not that bad, is it?' asked Fionna.

'Mmm, not really. I was hoping it'd be a more reddish colour.'

She sighed with disgust and slapped his finger away. They stared at each other and Fionna rubbed her arms.

'Well, if you're being normal, then maybe I don't have to pretend to hate you so much.'

Marshal shrugged.

'Do whatever you want. I'm gonna head off now anyway.'

Strangely, Fionna felt disappointed.

'But you just got here.'

'What, are you gonna miss me?'

'Why would I do that? It doesn't take much time to stalk someone these days obviously.'

'Nah. They were just all boring.' Marshal stepped up to the side of the wall and held his arm high as he held up two fingers.

'Adios. Until next time.'

He let himself fall backwards off the wall. Fionna ran to the wall's side, but when she looked over there was only the ground to see.

'What the junk? Weirdo.'

Fionna looked back at the party, and as she did she noticed something strange. Everyone seemed to be moving sluggishly, as though they were in slow motion. As Fionna stared, she realised that the people were becoming frozen in the spot. Even Gumball and the princess had stopped moving, and before long the whole party was like a painted picture. Fionna stretched her limbs and was glad to see that they still worked. Suddenly, the palace doors burst open and a group of people dressed in green cloaks entered the room with a large cart, moving swiftly between the frozen bodies. Once they reached the middle of the room, they gathered in a circle and unloaded a tall clock from the cart. As the group joined hands around the clock, Fionna felt her blood go cold as she saw the energy of everyone slowly being sapped away.

'Oh, no.'

Without a word, Fionna flicked her hair out of her face and stood on top of the wall, staring at the scene below once more before jumping down.

* * *

Evil clock people! Will Fionna kick their butts? Will Marshal Lee stick around to help? Will Fionna kick his butt, too? Are Cake and Lord Monochrome having giggity time somewhere? Find out next time.

(thanks for reading)


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